Aunt Katy Perry on Her Brand New Niece: “She Needs a Lot of Attention”

Katy Perry was a surprise guest at UNICEF’s Snowflake Ball on Tuesday, and she explained to VF Daily what spurred her to help raise awareness of the organization, which aids children around the world. “I’m just excited to be able to have the time off to refocus all the attention I have to something like this,” the pop star told us. “It’s all about children, and you know what? I’m also excited I have a new niece in our family,” Perry said. “And she’s brand new, like a week old, and she needs a lot of attention. So I can imagine what’s going on in other countries that don’t have the facilities or the education or all those things—I’m seeing it kind of firsthand, ’cause it’s the first time in 24 years in my family, so this is making some personal sense to me.”

The annual ball coincides with the lighting of the UNICEF Snowflake at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street in Manhattan, and the city was fittingly experiencing its first bout of wintry weather of the season, a bit of white mixed in with a cold rain. Perry confesses that she’s not exactly a ski bunny.

“I mean, I like to have the hot toddy in the lodge, but to tell you the honest-to-God truth, I am a California girl, and I don’t know how to necessarily dress for the winter weather,” she told us, shivering at her table. We noted her sleeveless gown. “So I have yet to tackle the winter wear, but I’m doing it as best as I can!” she said, laughing.

Harry Belafonte received a humanitarian award at the gala, which was sponsored by Baccarat and featured performances by Tony Bennett and Wynton Marsalis. Celebrity chefs Marcus Samuelsson, Michael Anthony, and Marc Murphy devised a menu that included truffled lobster salad to startand the biggest wagyu steak we’ve ever seen as the main course.

Chef Murphy takes his kids ice-skating in Central Park, but doesn’t partake himself. “I tried, and the first time I fell on my rear end and my elbow,” he said. “I said, ‘All right, kids. You’re a lot shorter. It doesn’t hurt as much when you fall. I’ll come and I’ll drink my tea on the side of the ice rink while you guys skate and take lessons. I’m too old to be breaking a tailbone.”

Samuelsson’s childhood in Sweden included skating on rivers, and often, falling through the ice was a tradition. “Then when you have to skate back for 40 minutes, and you’re freezing cold, it’s not that much fun anymore,” he said. These days when it snows, Samuelsson and his staff have snowball wars outside his Harlem restaurant.

Fashion designer Naeem Khan loves winter for the wardrobe options. He also enjoys skiing, and recalled once falling down, headfirst, with his head in snow up to his neck. On a hill, he explained, he stopped, but his body kept going.

“I’m from Nepal, so I love winter,” boasted Prabal Gurung. And the designer is really looking forward to it this year. “This winter especially is going to be more special, because my family, my mom is coming to New York for the first time.” They’ll be at his fashion show in February, for the first time as well. “I’m really excited about it,” Gurung said.

Tony Bennett, as you might expect, has the most sophisticated of plans for the cold weather. “Well, to give you a very astute answer, tomorrow I’m in Rio de Janeiro,” he told VF Daily. “I’m flying to Rio. I’m going to be at the Copacabana Hotel, where it’s very warm and beautiful.”